Vice President’s election: Who abstained from voting

Kathmandu, March 17: Eight hundred and twenty-nine votes were cast in the election of the Vice President held at the Federal Parliament Building at New Baneshwor today. The total 882 voters including 332 MPs of the Federal Parliament and 550 members of the Province Assembly were expected to vote in the election. Out of the 332 Federal Parliament (National Assembly and House of Representatives) members, two seats are vacant.

The MP post of Rabi Lamichhane has fallen vacant after the Supreme Court annulled it pronouncing a verdict in a case related to his citizenship while Tek Bahadur Gurung is under suspension. In the voting today, 14 Federal Parliamentarians of the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) and one of Nepal Workers and Peasants’ Party (NWPP) remained neutral and did not vote. Likewise, Ramchandra Paudel has been elected the President while MPs Chandra Bhandari, Barsha Man Pun and Manorama Sherchan abstained in the voting as they have fallen sick.

Similarly, Sahanaz Rahman has passed away and Laxmi Mahato Koiri was absent as he has a pending court case against him. Among the Province Assembly members, 28 members of RPP and three of NWPP remained absent in the voting while one member of the Janata Samajbadi Party abstained from voting, the Election Commission said. Federal Parliament (House of Representatives and the National Assembly) and PA members shall elect the Vice President for the nation.

The vote weightage of a Federal Parliament member is 79 followed by 48 of a PA member. The voting that had started from 10 am concluded at 3 pm today. Astalaxmi Shakya (Bohara) of the CPN (UML), Mamata Jha of the Janamat Party and Ram Sahaya Prasad Yadav of the Janata Samajbadi Party Nepal are in the race for the Vice Presidential election.